Today's communications requirements have outpaced the capabilities of current systems. There is a need for better security in both voice and data communications and an increased need to protect transmission streams. The same is true for radio mesh networks, which are made possible through advancements in radio technology, such as phased array antennas and consumer and enterprise adoption of wireless 802.11 access points. Such decentralized public mesh networks hinge on the ability for non-trusting parties to share and control network resources without the need for central administration.
While these heightened requirements coupled with the need for improved availability and reliability have brought network interoperability and unification to the forefront (e.g., some communication and network models have utilized patches at the application and operating system (OS) level to help satisfy some of these needs), such measures are alone not enough to provide needed levels of security and quality of service.